Annavaram

Annavaram is a village on the banks of the Pampa River. It is located in East Godavari district of Andhra Pradesh.

The village has the temple of Veera Venkata Satyanarayana, a form of Vishnu on the Ratnagiri Hill. It is believed that all the wishes of devotees will be fulfilled when Satyanarayana Vratam is performed here. The popularity and significance of this temple are next to Tirupathi in Andhra Pradesh.

It is believed that the place was known for constant food distribution (free feeding) by the benevolent people of the locality and that therefore the place was called by the name Annavaram (annam means food in Telugu). Another version is that because the presiding deity of the place blesses the devotees with anina varam (pronounced or wanted boon), the place is called Annavaram.

The hillock by the side of the village is considered to be very sacred. As per mythology, Meruvu, the lord of the hills and his consort Menaka did great penance and begot two sons by the grace of Lord Vishnu. One was named Bhadra and the other Ratnakar. Bhadra pleased Lord Vishnu with his devotion and penance and with his grace became Bhadrachalam on which Lord Sri Rama had permanently settled. Ratnakara desired to emulate his brother and succeeded in pleasing Lord Vishnu by his penance to settle on him as Veera Venkata Satyanarayanaswamy, Ratnakara remaining as Ratnagiri (hill).

The temple of Sri Veera Venkata Satyanarayanaswamy is the main temple on the Ratnagiri hill. There are also a temple of Sri Rama and the shrines of Vana Durga and Kanaka Durga nearby. The temple of gramadevatha"Nerellamma" (village deity) is in the village at the foot of the hill.

It is believed that god appeared in the dream of Earanki Prakasam a Brahmin villager and told his idol was left unnoticed onthe hill without any worship. The Brahmin then informed the same to Sri Raja I.V.Ramarayanam who was the zamindar. The two along with other villagers found the idol on the hill, installed it and started the worship.

Initially a small shed was constructed in 1891 when the idol was found. Later a temple was built in course of time with the cooperation of villagers and other devotees of the nearby villages. Subsequently the temple was reconstructed during 1933-34, with locally available stone. Later when the same reached dilapidated condition, it was reconstructed during 2011-2012.

The main temple is constructed in the form of a chariot with the four wheels at each of the four corners. In front of the main temple is the kalyana mantapa, constructed and decorated with modern pieces of architecture.

The presiding deity is in form of the Trinity namely ‘Hari Hara Hiranya Garbha Thrimurtyatmaka’. The idol is about 13 feet high in a cylindrical form, the base being in the lower sanctum representing Lord Brahma and the top is in the upper sanctum representing Lord Vishnu. The middle portion represents Lord Siva. There are some temples representing the unity of Lords Hari and Hara in some places and this is the place where even Brahma who is generally denied temple worship, is clubbed with the other two, and the creator (Brahma), the protector (Vishnu) and destroyer (Siva) are worshipped simultaneously. The image of the lord forming a single idol representing the Trimurthis-Brahma, Vishnu and Siva is of unique attraction.

The temple is in two floors; the ground floor contains the yantra and the peetham of the Lord. On the four sides of the yantra there are four deities namely Ganapati, Suryanarayanaswamy, Bala Tripurasundari and Maheswaraswamy which constitutes panchayathanam. In the 1st floor the Moola virat of Lord Satyanarayana swamy is in the centre, the image of Goddess Anantha Lakshmi Ammavaru is in the right and Lord Shiva is on the left. The idols are exquisite and covered in gold. The adjoining shrine of Sri Rama seems to be the holy spot where the original self-manifested idol of Sri Satyanarayanaswamy was discovered by the devotees. Lord Sri Rama is considered to be the Kshetra Palaka of this holy abode of the Lord Satyadeva. The glory and richness of Lord Satyadeva was widely described in Revakhanda of Skandapuranam.

Sri Satyanarayana Vratham

Satyadev is called God of Truth, he showers his eternal blessings on those devotees who speak only truth and stick to the promises they made to mankind and God. There is a ritual; called “Satyanarayana Vratham” associated with this God, performed with utmost discipline by his devotees. Hindus perform Sri Satyanarayana Vratham for relief from troubles and for prosperity. The devotees pray to the God seeking a boon and will promise that after the wish is fulfilled they will perform the Vratham. Though there are specific days and months considered convenient day of any month. It is also followed as a customary tradition by Hindus of many regions of India, that the next day after the wedding, the newly married couple will perform Sri Satyanarayana Vratham at groom's house.

Festivals

There are many festivals held in this temple including Kalyanam, Devi Navaratri in September, the Swayamvara Vardhanti of Sravana Sudd a Ekadashi Day, Srirama Kalyana, the Kanakadurga Yatra, the Prabha Utsavam, the Teppa Utsavam and the Jalatoranam.

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